On the Treadmill
by Icemera
Summary: Two years after the carnival, Natsuki found her new love at Toya's café and restaurant. Sunrise's Hime.


**A/N: **this is a small piece for maiuniverse September prompt** 'beginnings'. **And it's just me wanna do something lighthearted once in a while. Loool.**  
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**A/N #2: **Thank you** iLoveSunflowers **for editing this story :) I went back and changed some stuff after she saw it, so all mistakes below are mine.

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**On the Treadmill**

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"Natsuki! Natsuki!"

I didn't have to turn to know who was coming. I didn't have to look to know that other customers had already turned to look at me weird. I was occupying the round, white table at the furthest corner of _Toya's Café & Restaurant_'s patio, an empty bowl sat idly next to my hand.

"Natsuki, there you are!"

Tokiha Mai, my roommate, always made an entrance. Her long, bright orange hair was tied into a loose ponytail, exposing the bubbly smile on her round face as she ran towards me. Hugging a thick, yellow folder with one hand, she waved at me with such enthusiasm as though we hadn't seen each other for a long time.

"Yeah, I'm here," I droned, lightly kicking the chair out from under the table for her.

Mai gracelessly flopped onto the chair, unheeded of the glances around us. "Good… Goodness! That… That was quite a run!" she breathed, her face reddened. Sweating like mad, her chest heaved up and down, the jiggling movement garnering leers from the nearest tables.

"I can see that." I inwardly grumbled. I never liked attention. I shot a deadly glare all around and, as if on cue, the other customers turned their attention back to their own tables.

"Oh, what did you have?" Mai beamed as she lifted the empty bowl up and inspected it. A faint trace of chocolate stain was all I had left on the bowl. She scowled and accused, "You didn't wait for me."

"You were late, Mai. Ten minutes late," I said, looking around for a sign of a waitress.

She glared. "That means you ordered it when I was only three minutes late." Was it just me, or did Mai's face just grow into a deeper shade of red? She was really upset then.

"Your chocolate sundae, topped with mayonnaise," the waitress said, smiling as she approached our table. She gingerly put the bowl on the table, and then turned to Mai. "What would you like today, Tokiha-san?"

With a wide smile on her face, Mai clasped her hands and paused to think for a moment as if she needed the time to think the menu.

"The usual!"

Yes, the usual. We both visited Toya's thrice a week. It was only a block from Fuuka University campus. Sugary here was so good, and it was one of a few fun activities we had away from watching television at my apartment. Did I mention that exams could be very stressful? It drained all your energy. It gave dark circles around your eyes. It made you lose your hair.

Just when I picked up the silver spoon and licked my lip, Mai pouted. "Good Lord, this is your second bowl already. Wait for me."

I stabbed the spoon into the pool of mayonnaise and scooped up a spoonful. No hesitation. Taking in a deep breath, I opened my mouth as wide as I could and gobbled it up.

"Ah…" I could hear Mai whimper, and I knew what was going through her mind.

I opened my eyes again and frowned. "Final is over, isn't it? We've got all day," I said.

With sugar in my blood, I actually heard myself humming as I spooned up another chunk of ice-cream. It was the strangest kind of bliss. The air around me rapidly grew hot, and the sunlight was so strong that I had to close my eyes and took another mouthful of chocolate to soothe the rising temperature.

"Mm-mmm… Mm-mmm…" For a moment, I dreamed of heaven.

Resting her chin on her palm, Mai kept staring at my full spoon, eyes narrowed. "Oh, yeah, I was on the phone with Yuuichi. He asked me to stop coming here." She watched me took another spoonful and gulped.

"Retard. Has he ever tried the ice-cream here?"

Mai let out a sigh and said, "Yeah, but he said we're indulging ourselves for far too much."

"_Indulge_. Wow. Your boyfriend knows the word?" I couldn't help it. I got easily defensive whenever the subject concerned Toya's. It was my sanctuary. It was my addiction. It was my paradise when the outside world was so bitter and burning.

I started coming here two years ago as soon as I learned that Shizuru had decided to pursue her bachelor degree in Tokyo instead. Big city sounded alluring. Yeah, I got that. Bigger city meant more girls. Yeah, I got that. Bigger city meant prettier girls. Yeah, I got that!

Didn't she say she would repeat a year for me? Of course, the usual: she was just joking.

"I've put on seventeen pounds already, Natsuki. Yuuichi already paid three months in advance at the gym for me." Mai had a guilty look on her face. Her bust size alone would guarantee the attention from passersby wherever we went.

I inwardly grimaced, gripping the spoon tightly. I knew I had put on some weight, too. As much as I hated attention, I had begun to note the absence of the adoring look from the passersby, the flushing of the cheeks I used to see from girls and boys at campus. In Shizuru's absence, vanity had become my new best friend.

"Here, your butter scotch marble, Tokiha-san." The waitress had returned and served the usual.

Mai's face lit up as she moved on the chair, leaning closer to the edge of the table. "It's a shame. Yuuichi has never tried this flavor, or he might change his mind."

_Yeah, what does he know?_

Before we knew it, Mai had stopped ranting in false guilt. We both closed our eyes and let ourselves be carried away by the heavenly bliss.

"Mm-mmm… Mm—mmm… Oh… Oh, yeah…" I let out a guttural moan as I tasted the creamy substance in my mouth. Oh, yeah, baby. I could be here all day.

"I suspect it is better than sex."

At the familiar voice, my eyes shot open. My body froze at the sight of the chestnut-haired, young woman in a thin, leather jacket, a white tank top, and a pair of denim jeans. Shizuru was standing on the other side of the white picket fence, her eyes glittered, and her skin radiant in the sun. Nothing could come between my lips and the spoonful of mayonnaise—nothing but this woman, whose small smile threatened to invade my territory.

Out of the blue, my baggy clothes felt horribly heavy, and the patio was too small for me to hide. I lowered the spoon to the bowl, the sweet taste in my mouth suddenly bitter. The idea of makeup never registered its importance to me, but somehow I felt the urgent need for it now. I hadn't trimmed my hair for ages.

To make matters worse, Shizuru eyed me up and down, a stunned look on her face.

_What? Do I have chocolate on my face?_

"Shizuru-san, you're here! I thought you were lost." Mai greeted, pulling out a chair from under the table.

"Ara, it isn't too hard to find. Only a block away from campus." Shizuru smiled. I had only noticed how light she had always been, and how easy it was for her to climb over the waist-high fence. Mai and I would have broken it in the process.

"You knew she was coming, and you didn't tell me?" I growled at my roommate.

Mai raised her brows. "She left a message on our answering machine two days ago. Didn't you check it?"

The waitress promptly showed up, ready to take an order. Her short hair was dyed blond, she was on the petite size with slender waist, not that slim but much slimmer than mine anyway. From the enamored look on the waitress' face, I doubted if an order of ice cream was the only thing she wanted from Shizuru.

"I'll just have a glass of ice green tea. Thank you." Shizuru gave the waitress a smile for too long for my liking. But when she turned her attention back to me, I was unnerved by the abruptness of it.

"How have you been? We haven't seen each other for a long while. Natsuki looks… healthy." All the while, Shizuru had her polite smile intact. But I knew that she wasn't faking it only because her eyes were smiling, too.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I feel good. I've gained only twenty-five pounds since we last met." I sputtered out, looking down at the bowl. My hands fidgeted around the silverware and used napkins. Okay. It was twenty-eight. But what difference did a few pounds make anyway?

Shizuru frowned. Perhaps, she was struck by my sudden burst of such intimate information. But she quickly put up a smile again. "School had been rather hectic, but I'm visiting a relative here for the summer break. I'm sure we have a lot to catch up on, Natsuki."

"I'm going on a trip," I blurted out, looking away from her.

"A trip?" Mai turned to me. "Where are you going? How come I didn't know this?"

"It's sudden. Dad wants me to visit him in Singapore. I'll be gone for the whole summer break. Cool, isn't it? Singapore. Heh." I pretended to shake my head in ecstatic disbelief of my luck.

"Wow. When are you leaving?" Mai asked, licking her spoon.

"Tomorrow. _Very_ early tomorrow morning," I said, nodding to both Mai and Shizuru in confirmation.

It did stop me for a moment when I saw a flash of disappointment in Shizuru's eyes. She sat still on the chair, blinking a few times at the announcement of my holiday plan.

"The whole summer?" she asked.

"Yeah, and I should get going now. I've got a lot of things to pack. Yeah. Email me, okay?" I stood up so fast that my chair almost toppled. I had to get out of here before Shizuru could take a look at my ass. I knew she had a knack for observing my body, and all of a sudden, I felt the odd insecurity I had never felt before.

But the waitress instantly butted in, holding a tray with both hands.

I stopped dead in my tracks. On the tray, I could see a big bowl, a glass of ice green tea, and a folded piece of paper.

_What's in there? Your phone number?_

"Kuga-san, your third order of chocolate sundae is ready!"

My mind just sort of faded out at the moment of embarrassment of my life. I didn't particularly recall any details of our casual conversation after that. I only knew that I had numbly sat down again to avoid the glances from other customers; they were not the adoring look I was used to seeing.

The only thing I remembered vividly, though, was Shizuru's wide smile as she eagerly picked up the spoon and ate the ice cream for my sake. I didn't call her after that day and avoided answering Mai's endless string of questions concerning my blatant lie. There was no Singapore trip. Even worse, there was no more Toya's.

There was only the treadmill and me.

"Why did you lie to her?" Mai just wouldn't drop it. A towel hanging around her neck, she was in a white shirt and a pair of orange shorts. Her speed was much slower than mine.

"Would you drop the inquisition already?" I brushed the sweat off of my face with my towel. I had tagged along to the gym, running as far as 10 miles a day. It was extremely tough at first, but after two weeks of running, warming up my body, I thought I could go more these days. I started to feel my muscles again and had lost some fat around my waist. I wouldn't miss the extra pounds all that much, only mayonnaise over my sundae.

_Oh, God, is this worth it? It's mayo over choco I'm talking about... _I secretly lamented.

"You should give her a call. You guys haven't seen each other for a long time, Natsuki."

"I've been busy. She's been busy."

Mai grumbled. "Don't be so harsh on her. Tokyo is a better opportunity for her."

"I know. I know." I looked away, picking up my speed.

I knew it was going to happen, for the better. I knew I should be happy for her and that I should have put more effort to keep in touch. Didn't I mention that exams could be really nasty? Life in university was drastically different from high school years, and I just couldn't skip as I pleased anymore. Papers were another thing that constantly stole all my free time.

Letting out a sigh, I guessed Shizuru had gone through the same hectic schedule as well, if not worse. For two years, I really thought that all that we had was over. A young lover's love was fickle, and I kept telling myself that I shouldn't be surprised.

I bit my bottom lip, wiping the sweat off of my face again. I wanted to run twenty miles today.

"Ara, Natsuki is, indeed, very fit."

My head snapped at the familiar voice. My feet kept running, but I couldn't seem to outpace her now. I had nowhere to run this time. Shizuru was running on the treadmill Mai was using, turning to smile at me.

"Are you stalking me?" I involuntarily spat out before I could stop myself. My face grew hot, but I didn't think it came from the physical exertion.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Singapore right now? Should I feed my ego with your sudden change of heart?" Shizuru gave me a wink and increased the speed of the treadmill to match mine. "I've been coming to this gym for the past two weeks, but you never saw me."

"Don't play games. There's no way that I wouldn't have noticed you," I growled.

"Is that so?" Shizuru whistled at my slip, but she couldn't hide the smile from her eyes.

My legs felt a little weak at her question, at the wonderful idea of having her by my side again for months to come—at how I shamefully lied to her.

I stared down at my stoically shuffling feet. "I'm sorry that I lied."

Shizuru compressed her lips before she could smile. "I'm sorry, too. I spoiled you rotten back in those days."

"Oiii, Shizuru…"

"Hmm?"

"Can I… Can I spend my summer break with you?"

Looking through the large window, Shizuru kept her gaze out at the night view outside. "You didn't need my permission, Natsuki. I'm always yours."

At her reassurance, my extra pounds suddenly weighed like a feather, and I kept running.

I kept on running with her.

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**Omake:**

At the 30th mile...

**Shizuru:** I don't know. I just had to pick Tokyo University. I didn't want to, but you know the way things were going between us. I tried to come on to you, but you just—you said you weren't ready. And then you acted like you didn't want sex. They are two very, very different things, Natsuki: not ready and not wanting it. I don't know, Natsuki, but it's very important to me. Oh, no. The waitress did give me her number, but I didn't call. I didn't think you'd actually leave for Singapore. You weren't such a good liar. Then Mai-san called me and asked me to come here today. I didn't think you'd talk to me. I was going to leave, but you look so lovely tonight, Natsuki. You look so adorable in your tight blue—

**Natsuki:** Can we… stop… talking... for a minute…?


End file.
